Your thoughts on the Pool Poll?

Jennifer, I filled out the poll and have mailed it in. As a renter, it shouldn't weigh our opinion any more or less as I'm sure our landlords add a little into our rent to cover the taxes that are charged to them for being the homeowner. As for the pool, my kids have enjoyed the pool for many years. We buy a membership, which more than payed for itself in the first week,as my sitter takes the kids sometimes twice a day and I would take them almost every night. LeRoy does need a pool or spray park for those less fortunate enough to have their own pool in their backyard. Not having the pool this year put a damper in a lot of childrens summer vacation.

Stacey - just a slight correction. Your landlord ads A LOT into your rent to cover the property taxes so you have just as much right to respond as anyone. I grew up in LeRoy and spent many hours at that pool and now live in Batavia with the spray park. The park is nice but no one is going to learn how to swim there which I think is very important. The elementary schools used to partner with the YMCA and bring the kids there during the school day for swimming lessons but they haven't done that in years.

It would be nice to have a local pool again-Stafford doesn't have any(used to go to Call's Pond years ago,but that was closed long time ago)-I don't know if out-of-towners would be allowed or not.What would be REALLY nice is a year-round one, but the operating costs might be a little tough to find in the budgets nowadays....

From Stacey; "LeRoy does need a pool or spray park for those less fortunate enough to have their own pool in their backyard"................WOW !!!! I don't have the words to respond without being tossed off this forum !!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't think Stacey meant anything offensive by her comment Mike.

Insurance costs and liability have completely wiped out the private homeeowner from teaching private swimming lessons. I took lessons from the Crockers. I think half the town did! I would love a year round pool too but the costs to the taxpayer would be a big worry to some. I would have to see exactly how the costs would be broken town per household to make an educated decision.

It's amazing how run down the pool became during the years and that the day passes and membership fees could not keep it maintained and "afloat".

I'm with you Jennifer. It is sad how many children are growing up not really knowing how to swim. And I have no clue what Mike found so offensive about Stacey's comment?????

I did not find anything offensive or inappropriate in Stacey's comment. Perhaps it was the wording of the comment. Less fortunate to me means no clothing, no food, poor health, bad family life, etc. Not having a pool in one's back yard does not make one less fortunate.

Not having a pool in your backyard can make you less fortunate than someone who does.

The pool in question sits adjacent to the largest apartment complex in town. I am quite sure that a good many kids living there (and throughout the village) have enjoyed a safe place to learn to swim and a supervised place to spend the day. It also gives working parents peace of mind.

With a creek running through the middle of the village with plenty of deep pockets (LeRoyans all know about the Blue Hole), where do you suppose kids will go to cool off on a hot summer day if there is no municipal pool? Not to mention the added dangers to kids that have had no swimming instructions.

After the survey is completed, if people weigh on the side of a pool, I hope that LeRoyans will step up and mobilize, get some fund raising ideas together, and make the pool a reality again.

Beth....Spoken like a true liberal !!!!!

What does advocating for a community pool have to do with liberalism or conservatism? If this poll indicates LeRoyans want a community pool, then the local board has a mandate to pay for a pool. As for pool ownership being fortunate or unfortunate, I suppose it depends on who has to clean it.

Mike said "Beth....Spoken like a true liberal !!!!!"

Mike, I'm really dumbfounded by this characterization and agree with C.M.. I didn't see Beth make any proclamation that would lead to the label. If more than 40% of the village of Le Roy homes are rentals, then obviously there are children that don't have access to a safe backyard pool and swimming instructions. They should have, as citizens, as much say as any home owner. Would you have labeled the community activists and corporate donors that came together in the early 70's to build the pool in the first place as"liberals"? Or the folks that advocated and brought to fruition the playground behind the school? Advocating for a safe place for children and a resolution to a decaying public pool sight is a community issue that everyone, no matter what their political leanings, should be concerned with.

If anything, I favor the multi grant approach that binds the village/town/state, and we build a community center. I will say, however, that we should have included a pool in the new high school! Hindsight is 20/20. I do not at all favor fixing or replacing the current pool and location. JMO

Posted by Mike Kelly on November 24, 2009 - 10:55pm
Beth....Spoken like a true liberal !!!!!

I would think that supporting a community pool wouldn't have political leanings.

Jennifer,
I agree that a place to swim is valuable to the community, and I don't want you to think I am being negative. Here are a few things that should be addressed:
1) The location for the present pool is not the best since it is in the extreme southwest corner of the village. It should be more central.

2) A more central location such as the Mill Street Park or the under-used parking area north of Main Street would attract and serve far more users and bring some life to the downtown area.

3) A spray park doesn't teach kids to swim. Most of its benefit can be gained from a garden hose.

4) The cost per visit under one survey scenario is $57. The next condition requires bonding. If $395,000 is amortized over ten years and the O&M is $60,000 then the cost per visit exceeds $100. This assumes the same number of visits per year. This figure is unsustainable.

5) Lorie is right. Kids will go back to the creek and the quarries.

6) Should we look at bussing to Horseshoe Lake as we did pre-pool or bussing to the YMCA?

Thank you Mary Margaret.I did not mean anything offensive. I was speaking as a "less fortunate".

Bud said - "I will say, however, that we should have included a pool in the new high school! Hindsight is 20/20." I wondered the same thing, Bud. Our high school swimmers don't even have the opportunity to compete in section 5 and we're not a tiny D school. I remember a student that graduated with one of my sons competing as a team of one, but only because she was able to commute to Batavia to practice with the Batavia swim team.

I teach some classes over at Gillam Grant Community Center and on some nights there are no less than four activities going on for adults and kids alike. This is a model for any community and I highly recommend checking it out! I believe that the Gillam Grant foundation oversees their community pool (which is across the street on the school property). I know it offers instruction, community wide free swim times, aquatic exercise classes, etc.

The reason for the Gillam Grant's existence is the result of a generous endowment. If Le Roy is going to have a facility similar to Bergen's in the form of a community center it will take huge contributions from citizens and possibly a wealthy philanthropist stepping in -- similar to the many gifts that Vic Blood gave to the community a few years back with the medical facility, elder care and Lovey daycare. You're right, Bud -- it will need to be a combination school, town, village, state, but it will also need private $.

Ray's right. The current location is not centralized for kids in the community -- I believe that kids living on Jersey side are two miles away from the Munson St location. I grew up on South St and it was quite a trek across town for us. We did it every day, by bike, but it was way too far to walk. Ray, correct me if I'm wrong -- isn't the Munson St location because of the land donation from Lapp?

Lorie, you're right again. The pool is there because the property was donated.

My family lived at Royal Apartments the entire time I was growing up. I think the kids from the apartment complex used the pool and Wildwood park probably more than the average kid village-wide did. I have a lot of fond memories of the pool and it was a great convenience and a great service.
I would like to see the pool operational at its current location. I, personally, would be willing to pay the extra whatever a year to have that convenience available to residents and non-residents to use for a nominal fee.
However, I certainly do understand the points of the people that are so overtaxed that they have reached the limits of their pocketbook.
Concerning the poll, I think it was a very nice gesture to the residents - but in the end the poll will give very little insight to the direction which should be taken. The decision that the Village Board needs to make is hard, and I don't think there is a right or wrong answer.

I spent a term on the LeRoy Village Board. It was 10 years ago and at the time when many questionable decisions had been made that financially jeopardized the liquidity of the village. In a nutshell, the village was broke. We executed many unpleasant decisions around new equipment, froze pay of non-union employees and micro managed the village budget. Recently the village consolidated dispatch, something we began exploring years ago (government is slow and methodical!). The Village is in a better place today but by no means is the Village of LeRoy rolling in surplus of funds. And to remind many in this fine Village, the Woodward Family are no longer benefactors to us! Some people forget that.

While on Village Board I remember questions arising about the pool. Costs, first and foremost. We had no means of executing long term maintenance. It was always, what do we need to do to get by, "bandaiding"?? By nature of the funds available to local municipalities, this will continue to be the case. Pools are expensive undertakings, initially and ongoing. Pools to public school districts are the single largest maintenance cost in their budget.

Tes, maybe a pool solution through the school is more cost effective (via state funding) but it is still a cost locally as everything has a local cost component.

I would encourage a solution using Batavia Y, Gillam Grant and permenant closure of the pool. All solutions are well outside the long term affordability of this village. When it comes to maintaining and improving our infrastructure (sewers on Munson St as a start), physical plant and equipment vs. a pool used by a minority of people over 2 months of the year, there should be no question of the direction to be taken by this Village Board.

Jennifer, I have every intention of filling out the survey. I've been in NYC for the last several days, so I haven't had the time. I did, however, have the opportunity to voice my opinion to Greg Rogers. I told Porp exactly what I stated above.
I also agree with Tom about addressing more important issues for the village, as in the sewers on Munson St!

I believe the range on the repairs were $300,000 - $800,000 as described in the poll. By my estimate, that would be a range of $2.50 to $6.50/thousand assessed in our taxes assuming no state funding and no bonding (loans). If the average house is assessed around $80,000. The impact range per household would be $200 to a little over $500. Again, for an asset used by a small number of people in the community for a very short period of time every year. Not to mention, the ongoing cost of maintenance that continue forever (chemicals, electricity, opening/closing costs, etc).

What comes first a pool as described above or permenant repairs to prevent raw sewage from dumping into homes on Munson St as one example? I think we have to be realistic about this. This is a different community from when the pool was built with a much different community wealth. What we once could afford may no longer be the case. It was nice to have our own dispatch but we could no longer afford it and an alternative solution was available.

I would like to take a moment to remind all you fellow citizens of something...grants come from taxes, it's not free money. Happy Thanksgiving

Why not someone in the private sector build a pool..Open it and charge accordingly..maybe those that are for it could from a company and do it..Why wait for taxpayers to build it for them...

Or form a non-profit cooperative. The Le Roy Pool Association.

Howard- BRILLIANT IDEA! Now, I'm curious why this has never been considered before? Or has it? Something that most certainly should be looked at. Why SHOULD the taxpayers pay for it? If a majority of fellow Leroyans feel it is the right thing to do, then we need to step up as citizens, band together and make it happen.
Jennifer- while I see the "why shouldn't it be us?" as a viable question, where does it stop? Somewhere, sometime, things need to change. That grant/pork barrel money should never be collected from citizens in the first place. Slimmer, leaner, more efficient government is what this nation needs, and a return to people being more self sufficient. Entitlement mentality is the decay of our society, and I say what better time than now to set an example for other tax and spend communities and just say "no" to government expenditures and "yes" to a private, non profit enterprise. Again, great idea Howard

And Jennifer, just an FYI...while our ideas may be different, I appreciate the question and the ensuing discussion! Hope you had a great thanksgiving :)

Bud i like the way you Think....

The City of Batavia looked into building a new public pool and saw it was going to cost too much. That's why they went with the Spray Park.

I've never been involved in starting a non-profit. You should be able to find information on Google about how it gets done. Perhaps you can find a friendly lawyer in Le Roy who would make getting it started his contribution to the project (though, you don't strictly need a lawyer, it helps). There's also information on the New York Secretary of State's web site.

Even for a non profit, the liability insurance for a pool would be high. I wonder how many non profits can afford to cover the insurance without grant money (be it public or private).

Jennifer, give me a call if you want help getting started on a non-profit. The setup is easy, it's the maintenance that's a bear.

Like I said the insurance for these "PRIVATE" pools was just too much! I took private swimming lessons from the Crocker's on Selden Road for years but the liability wasn't worth it as years went by plus other factors. The insurance companies make it too hard.

Jennifer, I know a lawyer that has an interest in the pool. :)

Jennifer, don't let the nay-sayers get in the way. People can do anything they really want to get done. There's no obstacle that can't be overcome. Go for it.

Don't even think about it you two! (Lorie and Jennifer) He's got enought to do. Ha Ha!!